Pneumatic cleaner



D. B. REPLOGLE.

PNEUMATIC CLEANER.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 5. 1915.

1,345,550. H Patented ly 6, 1920.

QUihmmeo m (xvi/m UNITED STATES DANIEL B. REPLOGLE, OF BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA.

PNEUMATIC CLEANER.

Specification of Letters .Patent.

Patented July 6, 1920.

Application filed June 5, 1916. Serial No. 101,695.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DANIEL l3. REPLOGLL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Berkeley, in the county of Alameda and State of California, have invented a new and useful Pneumatic Cleaner, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to manually portable pneumatic cleaners, and has for its objects, improvement in the form, service, convenience and durability of such devices.

In the accompanying drawing the construction and arrangement of the parts and the entirety of the invention is illustrated sufiiciently for others to make and use the same.

Referrin to the drawing, Figure 1 is a side elevation, partly in central cross-section, and with parts broken away, of one of my improved cleaners. Fig. 2 is a front view of the lower part of same, but with the indicator cap valve member removed. Fig. 3 is a top view of the lower portion when the swivel joint connecting the floor tool is manipulated so as to bring the mouth of the floor tool into a plane with the axis of the motor. Figs. 4 and 5 are top and side views respectively, detailing the indicator valve member. Fig. 6 details roller supports which attach to the motor used. Fi 7 details one of the rollers in an enlarged crosssection, and shows its attachment to a roller support of the floor tool.

In the several views, like and similar parts are designated by similar characters.

The part designated 1 is a valve casing member with a fan-case on its underside, said member having tubular socket conduit arms 2 and 3, each communicating with a central chamber 4 having cylindrical sides. Into this chamber fits revolubly, the indicator valve member 5 which has a side port transparent top 9 which is larger in diameter than the body of the valve part of the member so as to give an ampler space in which entering dust may whirl so as to be visible to observers. An indication mark, as the arrow 10 is desirable to show which way 5 the valve is turned.

is the motor 11, driving the fan 12 axially at substantially a perpendicular to the line of the handle andthe conduit arms 2 and 3. An exhaust 13 fitted with a nipple 14 is ar ranged to lead the sweepings through a hose pipe or into a dust bag or other collector that the user may orefer. The motor is furnished with supporting rollers 15, 15 carried b a bracket 16 secured to the motor at 17. T e bracket supporting rollers are similar in construction to the rollers 15. 15' attached to the spring supports of the floor tool.

These rollers, from the nature of their use, are specially constructed for this device. The outer covering 18 is a cap shaped tire, slid over a spool 19, of antifriction material to which it is securely joined with cement, the pin 20 on which the same is to freely turn, having first been inserted. The inner end of the pin 20 is then riveted to a lug of the spring roller support 21, which is removably inserted into a socket in the end of the floor tool 23.

A section of handle pipe 22, extending from the arm 2 and communicating with the passage or port 2, operabl connects the floor tool by means of a swivel joint composed of the two members 24 and 25, the member 25 having a hooked-over flange embracing loosely a flat flange of the member 2 1, so that the parts may rotatably slide or turn on each other at the annular joint 26 thus formed. The spring supports 21, 21 while normally holding the mouth of the floor tool above the floor, are adapted to be compressed so that the floor covering may be brought into contact and then held by the suction against the mouth of the floor tool, thus permitting air to be drawn through from the underside of the carpet or covering.

A longer section of pipe 27, fitted into the arm 3 and operably connecting with the port 3', also serves as the main part of the handle of the device. A clamp 29 anchorin an electric connector member 30 attachab e to the conduction cord 31, is secured to thisw part of the handle, and the handle is further provided with a curved end 28, to which a suction hose or any cleanin tools made forsuction apparatus of this kind, may be operably attached. The sections of pipe are preferably of hard fiber which is light, and a non-conductor of electrcity, as well as smooth and agreeable to the hand. The

floor tool is also preferably of similar material, which neither abrades nor discolors the fabrics to be cleaned.

In the operation, the rollers 15, 15 ordinarily when sweeping, should be raised above the floor by lifting the handle; but to pass over the edges of rugs and the like, the device may'be rested and tilted on them, by lowering said handle. The projecting motor 11, while serving to give position to the rollers, also acts as a weight on the underside, giving the device a normal hang for service.

Raising the outer end of the handle also serves to transfer the main weight of the motor from its roller supports to those of the floor tool, compressing its spring supports and bringing the tool mouth into normal contact with the floor. In this way, the floor. tool neither scrapes injuriously on carpets, nor is held so high that a too free entry of air is permitted, for effective cleaning. By a swinging of the motor on the axis of the pipe handle, it is apparent the floor tool will assume different angular positions with reference to the plane of the handle and axis of the motor. In this manner the motor may be turned so that its axis is parallel with the floor, as shown in Fig. 3, the mouth of the floor tool still being properly disposed to its work. In this way spaces under furniture may be conveniently cleaned with my device. In addition to these advantages of my construction, out-of-theway places may be reached by applying the end 28 of the handle. This may be done by applying the end of the handle direct, by extending it with rigid tubing, with flexible tubing, or by equipping the end of the handle, or any extension thereof, with any form of suction cleaning tool. Suction produced by driving the exhaust fan 12, causes air to rush in from the floor tool, or from the outer end of the handle, according as the port of the indicator valve is turned to register with the port 2' or the port 3'.

The machine is adapted to be picked up bodily, using the section 22 as one of the handles, and when so held, the indicator cap is in convenient position to be turned by hand, removed, or for the visibility of passing dust. When thus held, it must also be noticed, the swiveled floor tool with rubber capped rollers, unobtrusively aline with the motor axis or with the forearm of the operator, causing no interference or damage to clothing. Rollers may lie in common plane or in diverse planes, due to swivel joint. When running the floor tool under furniture, this indicator top, instead of being hidden, faces outward on a plane, and in the line of vision of the eye of the stooping operator. This indicator member is also readily removable so as to provide ready access to the fan, should anything become entangled upon it during operation. Were the rollers not covered over the ends of exposed spindles also would be liable to scratch base boards while working beyond the sight of the operator, as under furniture, and were they not removable, it would be less easy to clean close to the edges and from under the edges of base boards. Thus it appears that a number of novel features cooperate to advantage in this form of cleaner, yet the exact details of construction may of course be'modified without departing from the spirit of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a manually portable vacuum cleaner, the combination with a member having tu bular socket conduct arms carrying vacuum producing means, of a plurality of suction pipes operably connected to said arms, and adapted to connect with suction tools at their outer ends.

2. In a manuall portable vacuum cleaner of the kind described, a plurality of suction pipe handles, adapted to connect with cleaning tools at their outer ends, and operably connecting to a common port member carrying vacuum producing means and means for controlling the ports of said member.

3. In a portable pneumatic cleaner, the combination of suction producing means, a pair of tubular socket conduit arms connecting with said means and apair of suction pipe handles, in axial alinement, connecting with said arms, and adapted to connect with cleaning tools at their outer ends.

4. In a manually portable vacuum cleaner, suction producing means, a member having a central port and two axially alined tubular socket conduit arms, carrying said means and having a pair of suction pipes operably connecting with said means, together with means for directing suction through one or the other of said pipes.

5. In a manually portable pneumatic cleaner, a valve casing member carr ing suction producin means, said member aving a cylindrica chamber, a pair of side ports leading from opposite sides of said chamber, pipes operably connecting with said side ports and adapted to connect with suction tools at their outer ends, and 9. cylindrical valve member revolubly fitted into said chamber and adapted to seal and open said side ports interchan eably.

6. In a manually portagle suction cleaner, the combination with a suction pipe handle adapted to connect with cleaning tools at 'its outer end, of suction producing means operably connected on the under side of said handle, a separate floor cleaning tool operably connected with the suction producing means, the said suction producing means provided with supporting rollers arranged to serve as a fulcrum to tilt the cleaning tool from the floor, in the operation thereof.

7. In a manuall portable pneumatic cleaner, a central va ve casing member, suction producing means carried thereby, a suction pipe handle and a floor tool operably connected to said valve casing member, together with a rotating valve in said valve casing member arranged for interchangeably opening and closing ofl' the suction through said handle and floor tool.

8. In a manually portable pneumatic cleaner having a floor tool, a suction pipe handle and suction producing means operatively mounted upon a side of said handle, a curved portion on the outer end of said suction pipe handle, curved to the side of the handle on which the suction producing means is connected, roller supports arranged to support the device in a working position, having the main part of the suction pipe handle thereof, normally at an in cline, and the outer extremity of the curved part normally horizontal.

9. In an air cleaning device, suction producing means, operably connected sections of suction pipes leading from opposite directions to said means and operatively joining thereto, a transparent-topped rotatable controlling valve at the junction of said pipes and suction producing means, said valve being freely removable and replaceable and adapted for observation as well as interchangeably directing air currents or suction from the oppositely leading sections of pipe.

10. A manually portable cleaning device comprising a fan-case, a cleaning tool, a handle having a tubular part operably con necting said tool to the fan-case; a fan and a motor for driving the same, the axes thereof extending at substantially a perpendicular to said handle and rigidly secured in said position.

DANIEL B. REPLOGLE.

Witnesses:

MILTON C. BOESEL, BENTON THOMPSON. 

